�ʹ�����

Since the passing of longtime Political Studies Professor John Meisel on March 30, thoughts and stories have poured in from those who knew him. A leading public intellectual with more than 50 years at �ʹ�����’s, Professor Meisel’s impact was profound at �ʹ�����’s and across Canada. 

"While his wit and charm could disarm anyone, it was his boundless curiosity about the world that stood out for me,” says Professor Jonathan Rose, Head of Political Studies at �ʹ�����’s. “His intellectual humility, sense of wonder, and desire to make meaningful connections made him a true public intellectual – long before that term was fashionable. But all that pales to what is his most important legacy: the role he played as mentor to generations of professors, public servants, journalists, and students.”

Here, one of those students, Eric Schjerning, Artsci’81, Law’84, shares a memorable classroom moment that beautifully captures who Professor Meisel was. It was originally published in The Globe and Mail and shared here with permission.   

__________ 

It was September, 1978, when I arrived in Kingston fresh from high school and eager for my first ever university class: Canadian Politics 101 with Prof. John Meisel. 

I had no idea what to expect from a university professor, but Prof. Meisel seemed to fit the bill perfectly. He spoke like a man on a mission, with a German accent, a shock of white hair and (likely only visible to students like me who sat in the front of a lecture hall of 300 students) a twinkle in his eye. Wearing his trademark garb of a turtleneck and tweed jacket, he seemed to me a cross between Santa Claus and Albert Einstein. I hung on the knowledge he exuded in his lectures. 

My only criticism of his course was my tutorial assistant. I struggled mightily with my assignments, trying for perfection, only to be rewarded with a C. Meanwhile a fellow student in my residence taking the same course with Prof. Meisel but with a different T.A. was consistently given As for work that I considered at best middling and high schoolish. 

Near the end of the year, Prof. Meisel told the class. “I have noticed that some of your T.A.s mark like Santa, while others mark like Scrooge. This will be rectified by me after your final exam.” 

True to his word, when my marks arrived that summer my transcript showed an A for Politics 101. 

I later learned that my fellow student from residence had received a C. 

Thank you, Prof. Meisel, for making my transition to university relatively painless. 

__________

Learn more about Professor Meisel in his  and in the �ʹ�����’s Gazette.